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London open: Stocks steady ahead of payrolls; RBS, Pearson rally
London stocks were little changed in early trade on Friday as investors awaited the release of the latest US non-farm payrolls and mulled over earnings from the likes of RBS and Pearson.
At 0830 BST, the FTSE 100 was flat 7,472.52, while the pound was 0.1% firmer versus the dollar at 1.3152 and steady against the euro at 1.1071.
Markus Huber, a trader at City of London Markets, said: “With the Fed expected to raise rates only one more time this year and inflation having moderated a bit of late, this set of job data might not necessarily impact the timing of the next rate hike too much. Instead traders will be looking for confirmation that the US economy is continuing to power ahead.”
The payrolls report, employment rate and average hourly earnings are due at 1330 BST. Economists expect US employers to have added 180,000 jobs in July, down from 222,000 in June, while the unemployment rate is expected to have ticked down to 4.3% from 4.4%.
In corporate news, Royal Bank of Scotland rallied after it posted second quarter adjusted operating profits of £1.69bn, up from £761m one-year ago and ahead of analysts’ forecast for £1.04bn.
Paysafe rose after saying it has received a £2.96bn cash takeover offer from private equity groups Blackstone and CVC.
Education publisher Pearson racked up healthy gains despite announcing a 72% cut to its dividend and plans to cut 3,000 jobs as part of a restructuring, as it reported first-half adjusted operating profit of £107m, up from £15m and said its pre-tax loss narrowed from £306m to £10m.
Millennium & Copthorne edged up as it posted a 12.5% rise in first-half pre-tax profit, thanks in part to solid demand for London hotels as the weaker pound attracted more tourists.
Merlin Entertainments was on the front foot as it said revenues and visitor numbers rose in the first half of the year, while budget airline easyJet flew higher after saying passenger numbers were up 9% and the load factor ticked higher in July.
On the downside, Hargreaves Lansdown slumped after scrapping its special dividend, while Assura nudged lower as it announced the appointment of Jayne Cottam as chief financial officer.
LondonMetric slipped after announcing the sale of its retail park in Milford Haven for £15.3m.
